FDA Alert: Tobacco Age 21 Effective Immediately Per FDA

FDA announced yesterday via an update to its website that it is now illegal for a retailer to sell any tobacco product – including cigarettes, cigars and e-cigarettes – to anyone under 21. This announcement (the day after Christmas) follows the signing into law on December 20, 2019 of legislation amending the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to raise the federal minimum age of sale of tobacco products from 18 to 21 years. The FDA’s announcement has drawn confusion from the retail community and media since the new law specifically provides the agency a longer time period (a full 270 days from the law’s publication) to issue implementing regulations. The announcement also fails to indicate whether FDA will exercise enforcement discretion, even on a shorter time frame, to allow retailers to upgrade systems, replace signage and train personnel. The agency’s announcement simply indicates that “FDA will provide additional details on this issue as they become available.”

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